PJO Holiday One-Shots
by bisexual-annabeth
Summary: Just a few holiday themed one-shots to get you in the Christmas spirit! Some canon couples, some non-canon couples, some AUs, some romance, some friendship. Basically, a little bit of everything! So grab a mug of cocoa, sit down by the Christmas tree, and cozy up, because it's time everyone's favorite demigods had some holiday adventures! Rated T for occasional swearing.
1. Once Upon a Lonely Christmas (Pipabeth)

**A/N: Happy Holidays everybody! What better way to kick off this Christmas season than with a little bit of Pipabeth? (Betraying the OTP, I know. I'll try to upload some Percabeth soon.) It's a little bit shaky as far as matching up with the timeline of HoO goes, so I guess you could technically call it an AU. Regardless, enjoy!**

_All characters belong to Rick Riordan._

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><p>The Christmas Eve capture the flag game had always been one of Annabeth's favorite traditions. But tonight felt like the worst night of her life. Maybe it was the mistletoe hanging from the cabin doors, or the surreal twilight of the woods at dusk, or perhaps she was just frozen to the point of delusion. Somehow or another, Annabeth's heart was in a constant state of sinking, the rising panic of another oncoming cry-session at the back of her throat ready to jump at any moment. Gods, she hadn't missed him like this in months. But tonight…<p>

Tonight was different.

Dragging her feet through the snow, Annabeth stomped on. The snow, which was nearly knee-high, wasn't making things any easier. She was supposed to be attacking the other team from the side. Come to think of it, she should have been running, but without her heart in it, what was the point?

Somewhere nearby, someone was whistling. It was a soft, mournful sound against the otherwise silent backdrop of the forest, so quiet Annabeth wasn't sure whether or not she was imagining it. But as she got closer, she recognized it. "I'll Be Home for Christmas". Given the circumstances, it was a bit of a punch to the gut. As far as Annabeth was concerned, her home was wherever Percy was. She hadn't been home for a long time, and certainly wouldn't be by the next day. She did her best to ignore it and steeled herself, holding her knife at the ready. After all, what kind of daughter of Athena would she be if she couldn't take down at least one opponent?

But as Annabeth crashed through the woods towards the music, she realized she wasn't facing a foe at all. Or rather, her foe wasn't facing her. Piper, who was sitting on a rock outcrop with her legs dangling over the side, just sighed as she turned toward Annabeth.

"Is it all right if I just surrender? I'm not really feeling the whole fighting thing tonight," Piper said, picking snowflakes out of the braid that stuck out of her helmet and averting her eyes.

Annabeth figured she must have looked like an idiot, standing there with her mouth gaping open and her knife-wielding arm slack at her side. If any of her siblings saw her, she'd never hear the end of it. She sighed, because right now she saw precisely two options. One, she could do exactly what she was supposed to, take the surrender, and keep going. Two, she could do what she really wanted to do. Any other day, option one would be the obvious choice, but the thought of it tonight made Annabeth sick to her stomach.

"Can I be honest with you?" Annabeth said. She hadn't exactly made a conscious decision towards option two, and yet here she was anyway, sheathing her knife and slowly making her way over to Piper.

Piper raised her eyebrows, and Annabeth realized how out of character this must seem to Piper. Gods, it even felt strange to Annabeth herself. "Of course," Piper said, after a pause that was a little bit longer than Annabeth would have liked. "We're friends. You know that."

"Yeah," Annabeth said quietly, pretending to adjust the sleeve of her jacket so she didn't have to look at Piper as she sat down next to her. "To be honest, I'm not in much of a fighting mood either."

"Really? You?" Piper said, with a quiet laugh.

"Well, yeah," Annabeth said, looking out through the trees and the snow that had been falling non-stop for the past three hours. She still didn't want to look Piper in the face. "It's-"

She was cut short by Piper. "Percy. It's Percy. I know."

"How? Is it really that obvious?" Annabeth said, but of course Piper would know, being a daughter of Aphrodite and all.

Piper sighed, small and sympathetic. "I just know," she said. "I guess you could say I've been having problems of my own."

"I've been throwing myself into working on the Argo II, getting ready to fly to the Roman camp and everything else that lies ahead. I've been trying to forget, but I can't help but worry that things won't work out. What if I never see him again?" Annabeth said.

"I know. I just want a new beginning with Jason, but sometimes I can't tell what's real and what's not. Sometimes I can't tell where the fake feelings end and the real ones begin. I don't know how much of what I feel is from Hera and how much of it's from real life, but I know that I feel something and it's just making everything so complicated," Piper said.

"I don't remember what his smile looks like. Gods above, I've known him for years and suddenly we've been apart for a couple of months and I've forgotten. I remember how I felt when he smiled, the way it made me feel warm and perfect in a way I could never begin to describe. But I don't remember the details of his face. I don't remember how far he closed his eyes when he smiled, or how much of his teeth he showed, or the lines around his mouth. Why didn't I memorize it when I had the chance?" Annabeth could feel the tears coming on now.

"There's been so many times I've almost kissed him. I've come so close to just grabbing him without thinking, and then I realize that I can't. He's already confused, I can't make it worse on him. But I want to. I want to, so badly. I want him to feel the same way about me as I do about him, but most of the time I think that will never happen. It's…it's excruciating." Piper said, kicking the rock next to her foot. "Ow," she muttered under her breath, and if Annabeth didn't feel like shit she might have laughed.

"Merry Christmas to us," Annabeth said.

"And a happy New Year," Piper muttered.

Both girls sighed and looked at each other at the same time.

All of the sudden, Annabeth was hyperaware of the closeness between them. She noticed for the first time the way their arms and thighs were pressed tight against one another, and for the life of her she couldn't remember when they had moved that close. As Annabeth looked Piper in the eyes, she could see every snowflake caught in her eyelashes and the way her mouth hung open ever so slightly. Time seemed to slow down as she took in the curvature of Piper's lips, the smoothness of her skin, the pink glow of her cheeks and nose in the frosty weather. It slowed down further still as Annabeth's thin, pale lips met Piper's soft pink ones.

They must have both had the same thought at the same time, because never in a million years would Annabeth have kissed a girl of her own accord. Somehow, it just kind of happened. Piper's gloved fingers curled around the soft spot at the base of Annabeth's neck where her armor met her helmet. For a few seconds, Annabeth allowed herself to forget about the outside world. She forgot about gods and monsters, and she forgot about Percy. In that moment, it was just her and Piper. Everything else felt like a dream. But every good moment must come to an end. Eventually, Piper pulled away. The girls gave each other one last look, a silent agreement-_ no one can ever know about this._

"Suppose we should get going?" Piper said.

Annabeth nodded.

They acted like nothing had happened as they made their way back to camp.

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><p>That night, as Annabeth lay in bed, she thought back to the words of the song Piper had been whistling.<p>

"_I'll be home for Christmas, you can count on me."_

_ I did count on you, Seaweed Brain_, she thought, _and look what good that's done me._

She knew she should feel guilty. Instead, she just felt tired. So, as the last carolers of the night retired to their cabins, Annabeth drifted off to sleep, her fingertips still resting on her lips where Piper had been.

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><p><strong>AN: Stay tuned for more over the next couple of weeks! Don't forget to review, follow, and favorite!**


	2. Midnight at McDonald's (Tratie)

**A/N: By request, here's a Tratie AU! It's a ship I've never written for before, so I'm a little inexperienced, but I hope you like it anyway!**

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><p>When you're pulling into a McDonald's parking lot at midnight, Christmas Eve, you start to wonder where your life went wrong. Katie didn't mean to become this pathetic, but things had been going downhill all day after her flight back home got canceled thanks to the snow. She had meant to order a pizza and leave the money outside her door with a note so she didn't have to face the delivery guy, but then she fell asleep while Netflix-marathoning and the only pizza place actually open on the day before Christmas closed for the night. As it was, she wasn't even sure McDonald's would be open, but it was her last hope. Wendy's, KFC, even the 7-11 down the street, were all closed. Katie almost hoped McDonald's was closed too, so she wouldn't have to face the shame of having fast food on Christmas. If it weren't for the fact that there was nothing in her fridge, she'd have turned the car around by now. <em>If only Chicken McNuggets weren't so enticing<em>, she thought, parking her car and stepping out into the snow.

To Katie's relief, the door opened when she pulled on it. She stepped inside, brushing snowflakes out of her hair. The guy at the counter didn't notice her at first. He was sitting on the counter, messing with his phone. She had to admit, he was pretty cute. Katie tried not to stereotype, but she had to admit that when she pictured the kind of person to be working at McDonald's this late at night on Christmas, she imagined some no-lifer with a creepy beard and a fedora. But this guy- Travis, according to his nametag- was actually kind of cute, if not exactly her type. He was tall and lanky, with curly brown hair that fell into his eyes. Katie cleared her throat as she approached the counter.

The guy, Travis, looked up, his eyebrows first furrowing in confusion and then lifting in amusement. "Seriously?" he said, grinning crookedly.

"What?" Katie snapped. So much for cuteness. She really wasn't in the mood to deal with some guy who, mind you, worked at _McDonald's_, laughing at her.

"McDonald's? On Christmas Eve?" Travis said.

"Says the guy working here," Katie said, glowering, "And sitting on the counter, nonetheless. That must be all kinds of health code violations."

"Touché," he said, hopping down and standing behind the cash register, resting his palms on the counter. "What can I get for you tonight?"

"Ten piece McNugget meal," Katie said, digging through her purse for her wallet.

"Will that be a medium or a large?"

"Large."

Travis laughed. "Quite the appetite tonight," he said.

"Shut up and get me the goddamned chicken nuggets," Katie retorted.

Travis laughed again. "That's not a very jolly attitude. 'Tis the season, you know." He pushed off the counter and sauntered back into the kitchen, humming "Jingle Bells" under his breath.

Katie sighed in exasperation. "Can I talk to a manager or something?"

"Manager's at home with his kids. I'm the only on here," Travis said, returning up front with a tray of McNuggets, fries, a cup, and a straw. He shoved it across the counter to Katie.

"Could I get this to go?" she said.

"You sure about that?" Travis said.

"Pretty damn sure," she sneered.

"Why don't you take a look out the window?"

Katie rolled her eyes, but did as he said. To her dismay, the snow was coming down harder than ever now. So hard, in fact, that she couldn't even see across the parking lot to her car. She groaned.

"This is just great," Katie said. "Whatever. I'll just have to brave the snow."

"I'm not so sure that's a good idea."

"Please. I know how to drive," Katie said.

"Then you should know that driving outside right now would be suicide," Travis said. He swung over the counter and landed on the other side, standing next to Katie. She stepped back away from him, taking her tray of food with her. She took one last forlorn look out the window, then sighed.

"Fine. I'll stay, but only for a few minutes until the snow clears up. Then I'm leaving," Katie said.

"That's more like it," Travis said. He grabbed her cup and straw off the tray. "I'll even get a drink for you. What do you like, Pepsi? Sierra Mist?"

"Lemonade," Katie snapped, "And I'll get it myself." She snatched the cup back from him. Travis raised up his hands in surrender, flashing that stupid grin she was already sick of. She pushed past him and stalked to a table at the back of the eating area. Slamming the tray onto the table, she plopped down into the booth. Travis followed her and stole a McNugget.

"Hey!" Katie shouted, reaching for it. He devoured it in one bite before she could steal it back. Katie glowered at him. "Who do you think you are, stealing my food?" she said.

"Relax," Travis said, "And technically, it's not your food. You forgot to pay, and I was just going to let it slide because it's Christmas."

"If I pay for it will you go away?" Katie said.

"Probably not. We're going to be here for a while," he said, nodding towards the window behind Katie, where the blizzard continued. "What's your name, by the way?"

"Why should I tell you?"

Travis shrugged. "I'll just have to guess, then. Nicole? Samantha? Elizabeth?"

Katie rolled her eyes.

"I could keep going, you know. Caroline? Monica?" Travis said.

"Katie," she snapped, "It's Katie."

"Nice to meet you, Katie. I think we need a Christmas tree, don't you?"

It was going to be a long night.

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><p>After Katie finished her nuggets, or more accurately, Travis ate seven of her nuggets and she had three, the snow still hadn't let up. It was starting to look like it never would. At the center of the table sat a makeshift Christmas tree made out of the garland that normally hung along the walls and some duct tape he found in the back. Somehow, a Charlie Brown Christmas tree sounded a lot more charming in theory than in practice.<p>

"How do you feel about Christmas music?" Travis said.

"Can't stand it."

"What a killjoy," Travis said. He got up from his seat across from Katie, and for one glorious moment she thought he was going to leave her alone. Instead, he went back behind the counter and turned on the radio. Christmas carols flooded the restaurant as he returned to the booth.

Katie groaned. "The songs are so overplayed. I've heard this version of 'Deck the Halls' at least two hundred times this year alone." She ran her hand through her hair and sighed, realizing just how tired she was. "I should be with my family right now."

"At least you have family," Travis said, with an amount of contempt in his voice Katie wouldn't have expected possible.

"What?" Katie said, looking up at him. She actually felt a little bit sorry when she saw the pain in his face.

"Mom's dead. Dad's in jail. Brother's at college," Travis said, "Not much more to the story than that. You?"

Katie couldn't think of what to say. Surely she should offer her condolences, but how?

"Katie?" Travis prompted.

"Oh. Um, my flight was just delayed. I'm so sorry about your family," Katie said, suddenly regretting how she'd been treating him. Had she really thought he'd wanted to be here anymore than she did?

Travis shrugged a gathered his smile once again. "Hey, shit happens. I try to make the best of it." He stood up and held out his right hand. "Speaking of making the best out of bad situations, may I have this dance?"

"Oh, no. I don't dance," Katie said.

"Neither do I," Travis said, shrugging, "But 'Jingle Bell Rock' is a pretty catchy tune and we've got nothing better to do."

_What the hell_, Katie thought. She took his hand.

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><p>Katie didn't know for how long they danced, but eventually they both noticed the snow had stopped.<p>

"Looks like you get to go home after all," Travis said. Katie couldn't help but notice he sounded a little disappointed, and although she hated to admit it she didn't blame him. She wouldn't have minded staying for a few extra hours.

"Looks like it, yeah," Katie said, failing to cover her own disappointment.

"How about I walk you to your car?" Travis said.

"I'd like that," Katie said, grabbing her coat and purse from the booth. They walked arm in arm to the door, where Travis stopped abruptly. "What?" Katie said.

"Look up," Travis said.

Katie laughed. "Mistletoe," she said.

"Well?" Travis said. He sounded kind of nervous, which only made Katie want to kiss him more.

"Well, we can't break tradition," Katie said, and she kissed him before he could reply, pulling his face down to her level by the collar of his jacket. It had been a long time since she'd kissed anyone, but it felt as natural as walking.

When she was done, and she made sure to take her sweet time, Travis grinned and raised his eyebrows.

"You know," he said slyly, "There's no reason you have to spend Christmas alone. You could come stay with me."

Katie rolled her eyes. "Nice try, lover boy."

Travis shrugged. "I tried," he said.

"How about instead, I give you my number and you can text me sometime?" Katie said.

"Works for me," Travis said. This time, he kissed her, pulling her up into his arms.

It was the best Christmas Katie had had in a while.

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><p><strong>AN: Reviews are always appreciated!**


	3. Deck the Dorm Room (Solangelo)

**A/N: As requested by duh shipper, here's a Solangelo college AU! Enjoy!**

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><p>Nico might have been annoyed with his roommate, if he wasn't so frustratingly cute. On November first Will had gone from hiding plastic spiders around the dorm room and telling corny jokes about the undead (What's a ghost's favorite type of pie? BOO-berry!) to singing carols at the top of his lungs and attempting to make Christmas cookies in their broken microwave. If Will didn't happen to be Nico's boyfriend as well, he probably would have talked to the dorm offices about switching rooms.<p>

"What are all these bags for?" Nico said as Will returned to the room with another armload of plastic bags. Nico, who had been forbidden by Will from helping for reasons unknown, sat cross-legged on his bed.

"It's a surprise, I told you," Will said, rearranging the pile of cardboard boxes and plastic bags on the other bed to make room for the latest load.

"Unless this surprise is going to help me pass my Greek Mythology final, I'm not interested," Nico said, closing his textbook and setting it on the nightstand.

"Says Mr. Mythomagic," Will teased.

Nico grimaced. "I knew I shouldn't have told you about that. I haven't played that game since I was eight. Besides, knowing how many attack points the Minotaur has won't help me remember the story of _The Iliad_," he said.

"You were twelve, not eight," Will corrected, leaning against the door with his arms crossed over his chest, "And I know for a fact you still have a box of figurines and a binder of cards in your closet."

Nico's face flushed. "How did you know about that?"

Instead of answering, Will reached into Nico's closet and tossed him a jacket.

"I need your help carrying something in, could you come out to the car and help me?" Will said.

"Jesus, Will, how many more boxes are there?" Nico said, slipping into his jacket and zipping it up.

"Just one more, I promise," Will said. Nico followed him down the three flights of stairs to the parking lot, into the bitter December air, and to his SUV. Will reached down and opened the trunk, revealing a cardboard box nearly the size of a refrigerator.

"What is that?" Nico said, rubbing his hands together and wishing he'd brought gloves.

"You'll see," Will said, "Now come on, help me carry it inside. You grab one end, I'll grab the other."

Dragging it out of the trunk took a lot more effort than Nico expected. "Why is it so heavy?" he asked.

"How many times do I have to tell you it's a surprise?" Will complained. They set the box down on the pavement so Will could close the trunk, then heaved it up again.

"How are we going to get this up the stairs?" Nico said.

"No idea," Will replied.

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><p>By the time they had dragged the box up the stairs- three flights of them, which seemed to Nico to be much longer on the way up than they had been on the way down- Nico was exhausted. Sweat plastered his hair to his forehead, and his face was bright red. He shrugged off his jacket and tossed it onto his bed.<p>

"This had better be worth it," Nico said, smiling in spite of himself at his dork of a boyfriend who was fussing over some bags while humming softly to himself.

"It will be," Will promised, turning around to gather Nico into a hug and kiss him on the nose, which was still cold from being outside. Nico scrunched up his face, and Will laughed quietly.

"You could just kiss me on the mouth," Nico said.

"There are lots of places I could kiss you," Will whispered, his lips hovering dangerously close to Nico's. Then, much to Nico's disappointment, Will stepped away abruptly.

"However," Will said, "First, we have some Christmas decorating to do."

"You bought this many decorations?" Nico said, incredulous, as Will reached into a bag and tossed him an oversized, bright red bow. "Is this going to be like that time you wasted all your money on that life-sized skeleton for Halloween and I had to pay for your food for two weeks because you couldn't afford it?"

"I brought _some_ of these from home," Will said, "Now go hang that bow somewhere."

"Where?" Nico said. Decorating wasn't really his thing.

"I don't know, on the wall somewhere. It's so plain and white in here, the room could use some Christmas spirit," Will said. Christmas spirit had never really been Nico's thing, either, but Will's energy was contagious.

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><p>After an hour, all of the boxes and bags had been cleared out, except for the largest one. The room looked like Santa and all his reindeer had thrown up on it. Strings of lights were hung up on every wall, Nico counted at least five wreaths, and there were ribbons tied to every doorknob, drawer handle, and light fixture in the room. Nico thought it was the most obnoxious thing he'd ever seen, but at the same time it made him smile. It was all so very <em>Will<em>. Seeing how proud he was of it, Nico couldn't help but be proud of it too. If overzealous decorating made Will happy, then Nico supposed it made him happy as well. Even if it was something he'd be embarrassed to show guests.

"So do I get to see what's in the big box now?" Nico said, walking over to the corner where it stood and placing a hand on it.

Will grinned. "I thought you'd never ask. Only if you help me open it." They pulled the box into the center of the room and set to work.

"Oh my God, is that a Christmas tree?" Nico said, reaching out to touch it as Will lifted up the top tab of cardboard.

"A fake one. I'm allergic to the real kind," Will said, "But a tree, yeah. You can't have Christmas without a tree."

"Where the hell are we going to put it?" Nico said.

Will shrugged and looked around the tiny room. "I didn't really think that far in advance. You know, if we got rid of your bed…"

"And where would I sleep?" Nico said.

"With me," Will said, winking.

"Except that the bed is tiny, and there's no way we'd both fit," Nico said, though Will's words set butterflies in motion in his stomach.

"We'll figure it out," Will insisted.

"Do we have to?" Nico said, a sly smile slowly creeping across his face.

"What?" Will said, though his smirk revealed that he was catching onto Nico's idea.

"Do we have to? Figure it out, that is. At least for right now," Nico said, inching closer to Will.

"I suppose it can wait," Will said, his eyes narrowing and his grin widening. He reached out and kissed Nico hard, pressing him up against the wall.

_Oh yeah_, Nico thought, _it can definitely wait._

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><p><strong>AN: Don't forget to review! Also, I'm still taking requests, for both Christmas-themed and regular one-shots. I can't promise I'll get a chance to write them all, but I'll certainly try!**


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